Publication of "Wiener Werkstätte Jewelry", edited by Hatje Cantz Verlag on behalf of Neue Galerie New York

(2008)

This publication accompanies the first major museum exhibition devoted exclusively to Wiener Werkstätte jewelry. It highlights masterpieces created by Josef Hoffmann, Koloman Moser, Carl Otto Czeschka, and Dagobert Peche, among others. Supplemental materials include design drawings, as well as historic photographs of prominent clients wearing Wiener Werkstätte jewelry. There is a particular emphasis on fashion designer Emilie Flöge, confidante of Gustav Klimt, who assembled a large collection of Wiener Werkstätte jewelry. The central essay by Neue Galerie assistant curator Janis Staggs examines hte founding of the Wiener Werkstätte, the development of its working program, the role of key designers and patrons, and the legacy of this unique firm. The Wiener Werkstätte, of Vienna Workshops, was established in 1903. The firm's artistic co-founders-Josef Hoffmann and Koloman Moser-subscribed to the English Arts and Crafts ideal of exceptionally well-made objects designed by artists and executed by specialized craftsmen. Pieces of jewelry were among the first objects produced by the firm, and proved to be its crowning achievement. In these spectacular objects, Hoffmann and his peers realized the aesthetic goal of the Gesamtkunstwerk, or total work of art, in which design and craftsmanship are at their peak.
Wiener Werkstätte Jewelry, Hatje Cantz Verlag Publications, Germany, 2008. ISBN : 978-3-7757-2165-3. In English.

Two Art Nouveau houses preserved in Bruxelles-Brussel

(2008)

The government of the Region Bruxelles-Capitale definitely listed the main parts of an Art Nouveau house in Uccle (rue des Carmélites, 177). The house was built in 1903 by Alphonse Boelens. The beauty, originality and modernity of the facade contrasts with the street line of traditional houses of eclectic styles, and its interior woodworks confirm the Art Nouveau style of the house.
On the other hand, a listing procedure started for a whole building in Schaerbeek (rue André Van Hasselt, 32) and for the facade the roof of the neighbouring building (rue Van Hasselt, 34). Built in 1900 by Gaspard Devalck, the building is a perfect illustration of the young architect's mastery and taste for decorative elements. Crowned with a wooden sculpted cornice, the facade is especially illuminated: stained-glass windows, sgraffiti and ironworks decorate the house.
These Ces classements s'inscrivent dans la continuité de la campagne de protection des témoins les plus importants de la production de la seconde génération de l'Art nouveau.

The facade of the brasserie will soon be restorated thanks to a regional contribution of 80%. The house listed from 1988 now hosts the Brasserie « La Porteuse d'Eau », a very well known place amongst Brussels' inhabitants. The house was built by the architect and contractor Ernest Blérot. It belongs to the architectural quarter of the street Vanderschrick, a unique area in Bruxelles-Brussel. The building gives off a true harmony despite the architectural variety and dynamic wanted by the architect.

The Palau de la Musica Catalana in Barcelona renovated to celebrate its 100th anniversary

(2008)

The Palau de la Musica Catalana, famous Art nouveau theatre of Barcelona, was refurbished to commemorate its 100th anniversary. The restoration works, which lasted 3 years, were achieved right on time to celebrate the centenary of the theatre. The festivities, which were opened on the 9h of February, will last during a whole year. The Catalan modernist style or Art nouveau architecture was at the height of its popularity as the building of the palace began in 1905. See Palau de la Musica Catalana website

The proceedings of the Historical Lab of Bad Nauheim are now available on line!

(2008)

The sixth Historical Lab of the Réseau Art Nouveau Network took place on the 16th of May in Bad Nauheim on the topic "Art Nouveau: Healthy in Body and Mind". To see lecturers' conferences, click on the link below.See proceedings (French-English-German)

Darmstadt: an international conference on Olbricht at the Mathildenhoehe - 11th and 12th of July 2008

(2008)

At the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Joseph Maria Olbricht's death, the Mathildenhoehe in Darmstadt organizes an international conference on the 11th and 12th of July in order to promote the architect among the general public and encourage researchers to study his work.

On the occasion of its EU Presidency, Slovenia presents one od its greatestt minds whom expert circles worldwide recognized as an outstanding artist quite some time ago. The architect Joze Plecnik (1872-1957) began his professional career in the joiner's workshop of his father in Ljubljana, then worked in Vienna (with Otto Wagner) and in Prague. His architecture ranks as an outstanding example of critical regionalism and is one of the rare competent alternatives to uniformism of the so-called International Style. Quiet and modest in life, Plecnik was rediscovered posthumously and won international recognition with the great retrospective exhibition at the Centre G. Pompidou in Paris in 1986. The exhibition was prepared by the architect Boris Podrecca, who has also organized the current presentation in Brussels. It shows a representative overview of Plecnik's oeuvre, with the emphasis on his works for the capital of Slovenia.

A new system to view our links and PhD thesis database

(2007)

As our number of information is constantly growing, we decided to create a search engine based on key-words thanks to which you will find in a few clicks the links and PhD thesis you are interested in.See links page See PhD thesis page

The Norwegian and Dutch versions of the activity sheets are now available! The Slovene version will soon be on line as well. Downloadable from our website, those tools allow teachers and guides to accompany children in their discovery of Art Nouveau through activities adapted to their age.

A Gaudí Centre in Reus

(2007)

The Gaudí Centre opened this summer by the City of Reus helps to discover the famous architect with interactive tactile models, projets, conceptions, tools and personal belongings. The visit lasts about two hours and can be completed with audioguides in various languages. The centre notably allows Reus to continue its Route of Modernism.

In October, the City of Nancy will host the Réseau Art Nouveau Network's fifth Historical Lab. The Office de Tourisme de Nancy takes part in this event, presenting the network and its members through an exhibition from 8 to 28 October 2007. The aim is to make visitors discover the richness of Art Nouveau heritage in the partner cities of this European network. Invitation to discovery, invitation to travel, here are the goals of this exhibition which enlightens our common heritage through a tourist point of view.

Release of the 9th issue of the CoupDefouet magazine, Barcelona

(2007)

CoupDefouet is published by the Urban Landscape Institute of the Barcelona City Council, which has the common commitment to find useful and efficient mechanisms for the protection and promotion of Europe’s Art Nouveau heritage. CoupDefouet is a non-profit magazine issued twice a year, whose purpose is to provide a channel for exchanging experiences and news around the world on common subjects of interest. The quality contents of CoupDefouet are possible thanks to the contribution out of interest of scholars and other reputed authors. CoupDefouet is distributed free to over 800 selected mailing destinations around the world, including city governments, museums, universities and other entities related to Art Nouveau heritage, reaching over 2,500 people directly interested in cultural diffusion and tourism as part of their professional or academic activity.
CoupDefouet nr 9, front cover and table of contents

New activity sheets now available!

(2007)

The French, English, Spanish and Catalan versions of the activity sheets are now available! Downloadable from our website, those tools allow teachers and guides to accompany children in their discovery of Art Nouveau through activities adapted to their age. Dutch and Norwegian versions will soon be on line.See the activity sheets

100 research titles related to Art Nouveau on our website!

(2007)

We are proud to announce that our list of Art Nouveau related research has now reached 100 titles. The Network has received a number of positive reactions on this new tool and will continue to develop it into a proper database in a near future. New titles are always welcome!See the list of research

Bad Nauheim Art Nouveau Festival

(2007)

In 2007 the Art Nouveau Festival will take place from Sept. 7th to Sunday 16th 2007. Varese is the first member of the Réseau Art Nouveau Network to join the Bad Nauheim Festival in September 2007 as a partner city.
Art Nouveau lovers will enjoy themselves strolling through the handcraft market on the first festival weekend. Settled in the unique atmosphere of the Trink-kuranlage, they can admire examples of stucco-, ceramic-, glass-, wood-, sew-ing- and jewel works. Especially families are invited to participate in the festival’s final day when inhabitants of Bad Nauheim as well as visitors of the festival are welcome to stroll through the city centre. Dressed in clothes of the art nouveau period they are thus reflecting the social life and spirit of that historic era.
Moreover a lot of events such as music-, theatre- and movie performances, lec-tures and guided tours through the art nouveau buildings will take place during the whole festival.Programme

Summer exhibition on Mucha in Ålesund, 16 June - 2 September 2007

(2007)

The exhibition «Alphonse Mucha – Documents Décoratifs» at Jugendstilsenteret shows a rare collection of 72 prints from Alphonse Mucha’s portfolio, published by Librairie Centrale des Beaux-Arts in Paris, 1902. The 72 plates are printed using a variety of techniques including etching, heliogravure and lithograph. When Mucha published this portfolio he was at the height of his artistic career and the prints illustrates how to draw women and flowers, the process of stylisation and examples of jewellery, furniture and silverware. Each of the 72 plates is considered a masterpiece of Art Nouveau design.See poster

Art Nouveau Tram in Rīga

(2007)

Rīga's tram has been given a new Art Nouveau design in 2007 by the artist Uldis Sosnovskis to enlighten Art Nouveau as most important history value of Rīga. From the 3d of July, tram guided tours of "The Circle of Boulevards" are available for tourists to discover Rīga's Art Nouveau buildings.See details

Report of multilateral exchanges on education is on line

(2007)

Multilateral exchanges on education (May 8th, 2007 in Varese) aimed to present different educational initiatives on Art Nouveau. The report now available on line gives a general overview of the presentations given by the participating partners: Ålesund, Bruxelles-Brussel, Glasgow, La-Chaux-de-Fonds, La Habana, Nancy, Provincia di Varese, Reus, Rīga, Terrassa.

The architect’s house “De Bloemenwerf” in Uccle, Bruxelles-Brussel, has been suggested as World Heritage by the Brussels Government. The house was designed in 1895-1896 by Henry van de Velde and shows a strong link to the Arts and Crafts movement in Great Britain. The interior design is also by van de Velde.

New website for Musée de l’Ecole de Nancy

(2007)

Find out about the collections of Musée de l’Ecole de Nancy, Villa Majorelle and the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Art Nouveau events and exhibitions at the recently launched website of Musée de l’Ecole de Nancy. You can visit it at www.ecole-de-nancy.comPressfile

This publication is a compilation of the best architecture and other art works produced by artists and designers at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries. Including more than 500 images, selected by the over 100 cities and institutions comprising the Art Nouveau European Route, it will take you on a fascinating journey to discover this “new art” that shone brightly a century ago and today constitutes a common, priceless human heritage.
For more information, please contact: ipascual@bcn.cat.

Proceedings from 'Building for a New Life - Art Nouveau Cities in Europe', Bad Nauheim 27-30 September 2006, now online

(2007)

The symposium was organized on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the construction of Bad Nauheim’s Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) complex of the Sprudelhof designed by the architect Wilhelm Jost. The conferences focused on the stylistic formulations of Art Nouveau architecture and city-planning and included a number of international scholars Discussions were held on problems of conservation, possibilities of new uses as well as touristic marketing with concrete examples from several European countries. The proceedings from the event are now available at:http://www.jugendstil-bad-nauheim.de/inhalte/inh_index_en.htm

New publication on Art Nouveau in Łódź

(2007)

The relatively unknown Art Nouveau heritage of Łódź is presented in this richly illustrated book, which was preceded by the exhibition ‘Art Nouveau in Łódź’ (October-December 2006), organized by the author, Wisława Jordan. As opposed to almost completely ruined Warsaw, Łódź kept its original Art Nouveau architecture – over 100 buildings and numerous interiors of industralists’ residences built in different historical styles (stained-glass windows are of particular value). A heritage worth discovering!
Original title: ‘W kręgu łódzkiej secesji’, Literatura Publishing Office, Łódź 2006, 432 pages, 412 illustrations.